Hearing set for piano teacher accused of abusing children

Staff photos by Tom Kelly IV
Anton Fomin, second from left, a former teacher at the Malvern School of Music, is led out of Magisterial District Judge Thomas Tartaglio’s court in East Goshen in an earlier court appearance.

EAST GOSHEN — Anton Fomin, a piano instructor accused of sexually abusing six of his young students, is scheduled to appear in district court for a preliminary hearing on Wednesday.

Fomin, 44, faces a slew of felony charges in connection with the alleged abuse of five 6-year-olds and an 11-year-old during private piano lessons at the Malvern School of Music. Fomin was arrested on June 12 and has spent every night since in Chester County Prison in lieu of $300,000 bail.

An additional 10 felony charges were filed on June 18 after more alleged victims came forward, according to court records.

The first three children to report the alleged abuse told investigators that Fomin touched them inappropriately during lessons, while three others later came forward and said he showed them nude photographs of children and adults, according to a criminal complaint filed by investigators.

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Fomin, who worked at the Malvern school since it opened in 2008, also taught private lessons out of his East Pikeland home, according to authorities. Following his initial arrest law enforcement authorities warned there were likely more victims that had yet to come forward.

Days later, the parents of three more children contacted investigators to report that Fomin had shown them the nude photographs during private lessons.

Last week the school’s owner, David Stoltzfus, said he was “shocked and devastated” by the allegations, and said that Fomin was fired immediately after the alleged abuse was reported. Stoltzfus also expressed grief for the victims and their families and said that he never had any reason to suspect Fomin of inappropriate behavior.

Fomin, who is originally from Russia, has no previous criminal history, according to court records.

The investigation began after a parent of a 6-year-old girl contacted the Malvern Police Department on June 4 and told police that Fomin had touched her daughter inappropriately during one-on-one piano lessons at the school.

After the initial report was made, two other 6-year-old children came forward and reported similar abuse, according to the complaint. Both victims, a boy and a girl, told police that Fomin exposed himself during private piano lessons and also showed them pictures of nude children and adults on his computer.

Investigators later executed a search warrant on Fomin’s residence and allegedly found images of nude children and adults, including himself, on his personal computer.

The Malvern Police Department and the Chester County Detectives are conducting the investigation, which remains ongoing.

Fomin’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday at the district court of Magisterial District Judge Thomas Tartaglio in East Goshen.